Firefighters survey the damage to the long warehouse at the end of Columbia Street. (Photo: Jack Delaney)
By Jack Delaney | jdelaney@queensledger.com
RED HOOK — A fire broke out at the end of Columbia Street on Wednesday, tearing through a line of warehouses despite the intense cold. No injuries were reported.
The FDNY responded to 911 calls shortly after 12:30 p.m. reporting a blaze at 700 Columbia St, and thick smoke could be seen from elsewhere in the neighborhood. The fire was upgraded to a second alarm within 10 minutes, and escalated to a four-alarm response by 1:40 p.m. as it spread across the narrow, 100-by-1000-foot complex.
“The wind was carrying in the embers throughout this building and catching fire to multiple other bays,” said FDNY Chief of Operations Kevin Woods. “It was extremely difficult. Obstacles getting in the way always affect firefighter operations.”
By 3 p.m., the fire had been contained. Dozens of fire trucks and EMS vehicles clogged the long road, only a few minutes’ walk from an Amazon packaging center and a school.
Approximately 10 of the 25 warehouse bays, which stored commercial goods ranging from refrigerated food to household items, were involved in the fire.
“We do have extensive damage, as you can see, to the roof area,” added Chief Woods. “This is a metal truss building, and the bottom cord of that truss is compromised. We’ll be working with the Department of Buildings to evaluate that.”
In September, a large conflagration brought firefighters to an artists’ warehouse on a nearby pier, raging for days before finally being quelled.
Earlier, in 2022, an electrical fire sparked inside a NYPD warehouse around the corner from the Columbia Street location destroyed reams of evidence, but was eventually ruled an accident.
Lillian Bonsignore, recently sworn in as FDNY chief by Mayor Mamdani, was on site. Bonsignore, a 31-year veteran of the department who previously ran its EMS division, is the first openly gay commissioner and the second woman to lead its 17,000-person staff. She highlighted the difficulty of working in such frigid conditions, praising the more than 200 first responders who participated in the operation.
“The men and women of the fire department did an outstanding job of putting this fire out,” Commissioner Bonsignore told reporters.
